1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of safety razors, and more particularly, to a razor that illuminates the area to be shaved.
2. Description of the Related Art
While many people have switched to electric razors for convenience or comfort, a good percentage of the shaving population, both men and women still prefer the closeness of a razor blade or prefer to shave in the comfort of the shower or bath where the use of an electric razor may be either detrimental to one's heath or to the life of the razor. Because of the flexibility of location as to where one shaves, lighting may not be available to the extent necessary to guarantee a close shave free from nicks and cuts. Starting almost at the beginning of the twentieth century, illuminated safety razors have been developed to mitigate these problems. However leaking seals and less than adequate light continue to push the development for a more efficient illuminated safety razor.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,180,686, issued to K. Allport in April 1916, discloses a handheld tubular razor having a lamp filament, a battery, and a threaded setscrew to energize the lamp. The lamp and razor is adjustable to provide for directing the light to either side of the razor blade. Although fulfilling the primary purpose of illuminating the area to be shaved, the '686 patent does not address any waterproof properties of the razor.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,094,062 and 4,473,943, issued to S. Papanikolaou in June 1978 and October 1984, respectively, both disclose an illuminated razor having a sealed electric circuit including a battery and a bulb. Both patents further disclose a razor head formed of light conductive, and partially reflective, acrylic plastic, translucent material for piping light around corners, and a means for sealing the electric circuit from water. The '062 patent has a razor head designed to illuminate the area just shaved, while the '943 patent has a razor head designed for illuminating the area to be shaved. The '062 patent has a slide switch for activating the light, and a removable end portion to allow access to the battery chamber. Whereas two sealing mechanisms, one for the switch and one for the battery access, are required in the '062 patent, the '943 patent provides an improvement on the earlier design by having a single seal behind the razor's head, which provides access to the bulb and battery compartment and incorporates a switch activated by twisting the razor head in relation to the barrel of the razor.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,582,476, issued to J. Hansen in December 1996, discloses a safety razor having a hollow tube filled with bundles of optical fiber leading from a source of light within the razor's handle to windows directed toward the area adjacent the razor blade. A switch is provided to activate the light source.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,227,676, issued to L. Sneddon in May 2001, discloses a combination of luminescent shaving gel and a razor having an ultraviolet or “black light” element for illuminating hairs missed during the shaving process. The razor incorporates a replaceable battery in the handle, an ultraviolet light source in the razor head and a switch for controlling the flow of electricity to the light source.
None of the above inventions and patents, taken either singly or in combination, is seen to describe the instant invention as claimed. Thus, an illuminated safety razor solving the aforementioned problems is desired.